From: Matthew Boulanger (matthewboulanger_at_mac.com)
Date: Thu Aug 07 2003 - 09:20:44 PDT
Just my two cents on the DARPA Newts,
I'd done a good deal of investigation into this a few months ago looking fo=
r ways to incorporate my 2100 into archaeological fieldwork. My interest w=
as actually started when I learned that the Marines had used 130s for field=
ops. =20
The Trimble card and antennae were pretty much off the shelf items availabl=
e to the public. While they may have been, at the time, adjusted to decode=
the military GPS signals (allowing for meter-level accuracy in realtime), =
they are extremely unlikely to be able to do so now (as the system is passw=
ord enrypted, and has likely changed in the passing years). I looked at th=
e systems available on eBay that were supposedly part of this project, and =
balked at the 200$ price tag, as you can get a Magellan handheld GPS with W=
AAS (3-5 meter) accuracy for just as much, and a 10$ investment at Radiosha=
ck will get you the proper cabling to attach it to the Newt. According to =
Trimble's papers on the GPS card, it used a good deal of battery juice from=
the Newt, so it likely would not have helped me when I would be out in the=
field for 8-10 hours. My advice on the GPS cards and antennae would be to=
pass on them (unless you're a collector) and opt for a cheaper handheld un=
it with WAAS capability and its own power supply. I've been very happy wit=
h that setup, and it's allowed me to save a little money as well.
The Leica driver you're refering to is likely a laser rangefinder. Basicall=
y it's a handheld item that triangulates distance to whatever it's being ai=
med at. These can be commonly bought in forestry supply magazines like Ben=
Meadows for relatively cheap. They're quite a neat little toy, but I have=
n't had too much use for them.
As far as the radio goes, I'm at a loss as to how the radio would interface=
with the Newt, and what benefits it would provide. I guess the data could=
be transmitted over radio waves, but that seems a little peculiar.
From what I can tell, it would have been much easier to transmit all that i=
nformation, like you said, however, you need to factor in the relaying of t=
hat information (correctly) to scores of different people, the calculation =
of time it will take, and the consequences of that action on future actions=
. Streamlining the whole thing into a digital workflow would maintain cons=
istency of information, logging of the action, inventory control, etc. Obv=
iously it struck a chord with them, as the recent actions in Iraq relied ve=
ry heavily on GPS and handheld computers. Newer devices from Trimble and L=
eica incorporate both GPS units with sub-meter accuracy and Windows Pocket=
PC software (like the Trimble GeoXT, the Trimble Recon, etc) in ruggedized =
units that are very appealing, but cost quite a hefty bit of change.
In the long run, I figured that Fieldworker was the best for my needs, as i=
t will interface with all of the above mentioned items (except the radio bi=
t), allows me to customize data entry screens, take GPS readings, and impor=
t directly into ArcView and other GIS systems. It's not a pretty setup, bu=
t for an archaeologist on a tight budget, it works very well (I would say b=
etter than many of the iPaq/ArcPad setups out there that I've seen).
-Matt
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